This is a little difficult to find out. As, the definition of West, it is somewhat confusing. So, let’s start by finding out what IS west. West, other than being a direction on the compass, is any country which has Greco-Roman roots in its culture. By this we mean mostly these countries: the European countries, the Americas, the Australasian continent and Canada. Each of these countries has its own Muslim community and one Mosque is more beautiful than the other. A common statistic of all these countries is currently unavailable. Therefore, one from the upper echelons of the world’s best mosques must be chosen, one that is located in the West.

What is more typically West than London? And it is in this busy city that the most famous mosque in the world is located. London harbors a Muslim population of more than one million people, as of a study conducted in 2011. It is in London that the Baitul Futuh Mosque is located. The name literally translates into English as “The House of Victories.” It is located in a suburb of London, in the city’s south-west part, called Morden. The mosque was completed in2003 at a cost of around £5.5 million. None of the money came from external sources but was donated entirely by the Ahmadiyyah Muslim Community. Covering an area of 5.2 acres, it can accommodate a maximum of 10,000 worshippers within itself. The mosque was declared open to the public on the 3^rd of October 2003.

The architecture is distinctively Arabic. The mosque has one dome and two minarets. The minarets are 35m and 25.5m respectively. Although constructed by the Ahmadiyyah community in London, the mosques extends itself to the services of the greater Muslim community and everyone is welcome to its prayer halls. It holds the Muslim prayers (Salaat) five times and day and offers a host of religious services to its worshippers. Other than the basic service of prayers, it also helps carry out a large number of programs the aim of which is to promote Islam as being a peaceful, harmless religion that believes in submission to none other but the Supreme Being, that is, Allah. Among these programs are school tours, community events, peace symposiums, and hosting the BBC 4 program: Any Questions?

A variety of facilities are available to the worshippers worshipping at the Baitul Futuh and these include: separate prayer halls for both genders, access to a library that has a rich collection of books and documents, Gymnasium for fitness, guest rooms for guests. There are also multi-functional rooms, offices, kitchen and dining facilities, and being home to the MTA Television Studios. Occasionally, it hosts many exhibitions that enrich the mind of its worshippers.

In a mosque one of the most important facilities is the washroom facilities as the wealthy is compulsory before an act of Salaat or Koran recitation. That being the case, there is almost no chance to complain about the washroom facilities of the Mosque. Other than the general WC’s, it has washed basins, footbaths and showers. For the disabled, there are toilets also. And for worshippers who have come with their babies, there are baby changing units. In addition to all of these facilities, it also has drinking fountains.

This indeed is a mosque that should be famous all over the world.

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Women in Japan have been playing an increasingly important role in the Japanese Mosques.  They have been quite active in helping propagate Islam to not-yet-Muslims and guide new converts in the ways unique to them. How can we, the Muslim men, help make the Japanese mosques become more women-friendly?

Most of the Japanese Muslim women converted to Islam because they had to embrace the religion before getting married with their mostly foreign-born  Muslim migrant husbands.

With the passage of time, these women have become increasingly vocal in their roles in the Mosques in organizing many Islamic studies and other community and cultural activities.

Indeed, there are many aspects of the role of Muslim women in Japan. However, in this article, we will Inshallah, discuss their role with a special reference to the Mosques in the country.

• Women`s participation on the Mosque boards. Although, they are not directly a part of the board in their local mosques, they have taken on various important roles to handle many dawah and other cultural activities
• Female attendance at Friday prayers and other events related to Mosques is still limited in most of the Masajid in Japan.  In fact, most of the mosques do not have a separate place for Muslim women to pray or perform other activities independently according to their own free will
• Women-only programs at Mosques. Some mosques have started organizing women-only study programs specifically targeted to the Japanese Muslim women.  These events are mainly organized by relatively more knowledgable Japanese women who, in most cases, converted to Islam relatively long time ago, trained themselves via self-study programs or other similar means and, now, are ready to pass on the acquired knowledge to other aspirant women leaders in the Muslim community in the country.
• Many of the Muslim women are not trained to perform dawah and other related activities. However, they can easily organize other cultural activities quite effectively.
• A possible reason why more women are not very active in the Muslim community is that their husbands either do not encourage them to be a dynamic part of the Muslim community due to their own lack of Islamic knowledge
• Unfortunately, many women became Muslims because they had to get married to a Muslim. . So, they do not take their religion too seriously and keep on indulging in many of the activities which they had been doing before entering Islam

How can we make women better trained to serve the cause of the Muslim community in their respective locations?

1. One way could be to organize tarbiyat or training programs for women specifically,
2. Encourage their husbands to bring women to the masajid
3. Educate their husbands about the true and vibrant role of the Muslim women in a growing Islamic society
4. Make partitions or arrange separate rooms for the women to perform their activities. However, many of the mosques are too small to accommodate Muslim women separately on various occasions including Friday prayers, Saturday study programs etc.

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"Let's say no to Turkish religious and economic expansion!"

This was the main slogan of a protest rally organized by a group of Georgian nationalists outside the government's house. Members of the non-governmental organization named "National Front" staged the protest against construction of a new mosque in the sea-side city of Batumi near the Turkish border.

Protesters called on the government to annul agreements with Ankara for construction of the new mosque, as well as stop accommodating Turkish citizens in the coastal region of Adjara, which stipulates revision of visa relations with Turkey.

Press TV, 11 March 2013

See also "Georgian PM does not understand opponents of mosque construction in Batumi", Trend, 14 March 2013

The proposal to build a new mosque at Batumi was the subject of a much larger protest last year.

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Greece's foreign minister has reiterated his government's call to construct a mosque in Athens, but minority representatives in the country have expressed their skepticism about the administration's sincerity. "Athens is the last European capital without a legal place of worship for its Muslim residents. The decisions have been made and we are moving ahead. We should not have delayed this long," Dimitris Avromopoulos said in a recent interview.

But İbrahim Şerif, mufti of Komotini and head of the advisory board of the Muslim minority in Western Thrace, said the regulations on the appointment of 240 religious teachers for the community would restrict their freedom of religion and rights granted by the Lausanne Treaty. The treaty bound Turkey and Greece to treat their respective minorities reciprocally.

Şerif said the Turkish minority is under pressure from Greek authorities, but added that a dialogue process with the minority would help produce a solution.

"Muslims need a mosque in Athens. They perform their prayers at squares and in a park. If Greece is a democratic country, they should acknowledge worship for Muslims. It is a 'shame of democracy' for Athens not to have a mosque," he said.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan offered Ankara's help in building a mosque in Athens after meeting with his Greek counterpart, Antonis Samaras, in Doha in late January. Xanthi Mufti Ahmet Mete also criticized the regulation. "This regulation has a religion aspect. It is unacceptable that the state appoints religious teachers without asking imams. Greek authorities should listen to the minority," he said. A deputy from the far-left main opposition SYRIZA, Rena Duru, said the issue of the construction of the mosque was a pending issue which both PASOK and New Democracy governments ignored in the past and that the negligence of authorities "pushed" Muslims toward uncontrolled prayer spaces.

The leader of the Greece Muslim Association, Naim El Gandur, said the attitude of the Greek government over the construction of a mosque was insincere. "Mr. Avramopoulos is optimistic on the issue, but we have heard the same things from every government. There has been no progress on the issue. Nothing changes in practice," he said.

Hurriyet Daily News, 13 March 2013

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Christians in west Oxfordshire have signed a letter expressing "shock and outrage" at discrimination against Muslims in Chipping Norton.

A planned mosque in the town fell through last month after landlord Georg Wissinter received a threat that it would be burnt to the ground. Applicant Tahirul Hasan, a town councillor, had received planning permission to convert the former shop in Hitchmans Mews into a mosque. The town's 34-strong Muslim community had planned to open from sunrise until one hour after sunset for 10-minute prayers five times a day.

The letter says: "As Christians we know that Jesus called us to love God and our neighbour as we love ourselves. It is for us to welcome the stranger and to be hospitable to all. We affirm that all people have the right to be treated as human beings with the freedom to practice their faith without fear of persecution."

The letter is signed by 38 Christians, including Witney Congregational Church minister the Rev Jason Boyd, High Street Methodist Church minister the Rev Richard Donoghue, and Chipping Norton team vicar David Salter.

Witney Gazette, 12 March 2013

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Supporters of a mosque in Doveton's industrial area have urged anti-Islamic cleric Pastor Danny Nalliah and his followers in the Catch the Fire Ministries to learn to live with it.

Outside Casey Council chambers on Tuesday night, supporters were quietly jubilant after Casey councillors ticked off the mosque in accordance with a recommendation from their planners. But Mr Nalliah, who has led the campaign against the mosque, described the decision as "a sad day for Australia" and said his group would appeal to the Supreme or Victorian Court to overturn it.

A spokeswoman for the applicants, Sherene Hassan, urged Mr Nalliah and his followers to follow Jesus' precept and "love thy neighbour". "That's what we plan to do," she said. "But we haven't felt much love from this group." The mosque is being built next to Catch the Fire's new headquarters and church, and Ms Hassan said they would welcome visitors from the neighbouring church.

Mr Nalliah was in the public gallery, along with about 60 supporters, who were watched closely by four police and four security officers. The atmosphere was tense but there was not the disruption from the gallery of a previous meeting.

Councillors voted nine to one to approve the mosque despite 33 objections and 14 petitions containing more than 2000 signatures opposing it. They accepted the recommendations of the planning department, whose report stated that "fears of the unknown" were not valid grounds for rejecting the mosque.

Objectors cited traffic concerns, lack of public transport, loss of amenity for neighbours, the height of the mosque, noise concerns and concerns that Islam "teaches hate".

In their report, the planners cited an earlier ruling by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal in relation to a Romanian Orthodox Church in Narre Warren North which made it clear "fears of the unknown" were not appropriate grounds for refusing a permit. "It follows that religious or cultural differences (or fears) are not within the realm of the planning scheme assessment."

They stated the application was consistent with state and local planning policies and there were two approved places of worship near the proposed site, 27-31 Green Street, including the new headquarters of Catch the Fire Ministries next door.

The sole councillor to oppose the mosque, Rosalie Crestani, asked repeated questions of the planning department but did not raise the anti-Islamic objections she had raised in previous meetings.

Casey Weekly, 12 March 2013

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Guelph police have their hate crimes unit investigating after racial graffiti was discovered on a mosque.

Numerous spray-painted graffiti markings were discovered on the outside of the Guelph Muslim Society's mosque at 286 Water Street early Wednesday. The graffiti was painted between 9 p.m. Tuesday and 7 a.m. Wednesday. It contained derogatory references to Muslims along with inflammatory and threatening language.

"There are some comments specifically about the faith, about the religion," said Guelph Muslim Society president Muhammed Sayyed. "It's not something like a random act."

Police say the incident goes beyond simple mischief, which is why a specialized unit was brought in to investigate. "Due to … the type of information that was put on those walls, we're moving it upstairs to our hate crimes unit," said Const. Mike Gatto.

Sayyed says much of the vandalism was quickly cleaned up because the society doesn't want people, especially children, to have to look at it.

A security camera outside the mosque was able to capture two suspects.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 519-824-1212.

CTV, 7 March 2013

See also The Loop, 7 March 2013

And CAIR-CAN press release, 7 March 2013

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Mosque also known as Masjid in Arabic means any open area or house for praying in Islam. It is a holy place of worship for the followers of Islam and is also known as “place of prostration” to God. Muslims are supposed to pray five times a day, i.e. near dawn, midday, afternoon, around sunset and at the nightfall, preferably in Masjid. There is a place outside or inside every Mosque where Muslim worshipers are supposed to take off their shoes. There is another place where Muslims can carry out ritual of washing before praying in a Mosque. This ritual is known as Wudhu.

The Mosques are very often built with a domed roof and a tall tower known as a Minaret. Muslims are called for worship from the Minaret, and the man who calls to worship is called Muezzin. No pictures or statues are allowed inside a Mosque. Many mosques are decorated with the patterns and words that shows versus of the Quran. Muslims don’t put or use much furniture in mosques but most of the time Muslims use praying mats.

In a Mosque, there is always a Quibla wall which faces Mecca (Makkah) which signifies direction and has an empty arch. The direction of Mecca is very important for Muslims, and it is very crucial that every Muslim should know it. Women and Men have separate places for prayers usually women pray in a screened off area in the Mosque which holds its services every day. Friday is a special day for prayer so on Friday noon all Muslims go to the Mosque.

Eid Al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha are two Eids holidays in the Islamic Calendar on which special prayers are held at Mosques in the morning. In the month of Ramadan when Muslims fast during the day, Mosques host Iftar after sunset, after the fourth required prayer of the day, called Maghrib.

The third pillar of Islam states that Muslims are supposed to give approximately one-fortieth of their wealth to charity as Zakat. Since Mosques are the center of Muslim communities, so that is where Muslim give and, if necessary, collect Zakat. A special Zakat is collected by Mosques before Eid-Al-Fitr in order to help poor Muslims to attend the prayers and celebrations associated with the holiday.

Salat is the Islamic prayer in the Muslim world. Salat involves all 5 everyday prayers: Fajr (dawn), Dhuhr (noon), Asr (afternoon), Maghrib (evening), along with Isha’ (night). This Fajr prayer is carried out just before dawn. Dhuhr is carried out inside the midday following sun features surpassed its maximum level, Asr is the afternoon before sundown, Maghrib is the evening prayer following sundown along with Isha is the nighttime prayer. These types of prayers are usually recited whilst experiencing this Kaaba with Mecca.

About the author

writer @Omniya_Fareed on Twitter
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A woman who fought for CCTV coverage at a Llanelli mosque where Muslims claim to have suffered years of abuse said the situation has now improved.

Anne Stevens-Bevan, of Llanelli's Ethnic Minority Help Association, fought tirelessly for improved security at the mosque on Station Road after people going there to pray said they had been abused.

The issue was brought to the attention of the Muslim Council for Great Britain and the Home Secretary, and Carmarthenshire Council agreed to fund cameras outside the mosque last year.

Mrs Stevens-Bevan said she had not been made aware of any trouble since their installation. "This is what we fought so hard for," she said. "We haven't had any further notices of anything happening down there."

She said religious freedom was a cause close to her heart – and vowed to keep fighting against prejudice. "If we all understood each other the world would be a better place," said Mrs Stevens-Bevan.

The problems came to a head when a group of elderly women marking the festival of Ramadan claimed to have been followed into the building by two men. Metal bars were fitted over the mosque's windows last year after reports were made that glass was smashed while someone was praying inside.

Carmarthenshire Council's community safety partnership manager Kate Thomas confirmed there had been no issues since the CCTV camera was put in place. "The camera was installed in June 2012 and there have been no incidents reported to the police since, which is excellent news," she said.

Llanelli Star, 27 February 2013

Via ENGAGE

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Fascists throwing firecrackers at counter-demonstrators during last October's protestPolice have charged 13 people after a demonstration at the site of a new mosque in Sunderland turned violent, as far-right groups including the EDL clashed with local Muslims and anti-fascists.

Around 200 people attended the pre-planned demonstration on St Mark's Road in Millfield on Saturday, October 6, 2012, where a former council transport depot is being converted into a mosque for up to 150 Pakistani Muslims.

The English Defence League, Scottish Defence League and Sunderland Anti-Fascist Coalition were among the protesters.

Police have now charged 13 people with public order offences, one person has been given a caution and one person has been issued with a fixed penalty notice.

All those who have been charged are banned from attending any demonstrations in Sunderland or entering St Mark's Road or Chester Road.

Sky Tyne and Wear, 1 March 2013

Cf. the earlier report by Spark and the comment by Gary Duncan of the Sunderland Anti-Fascist Coalition.

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The Murfreesboro Post filed an appeal Tuesday in the Tennessee Court of Appeals contending a Rutherford County judge unfairly targeted the publication and later erred by declining to rule on its legal status, as part of the on-going litigation over construction of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.

In the appeal, attorney David LaRoche contends Chancellor Robert Corlew III unnecessarily created controversy when none existed prior to the Islamic Center lawsuit, yet declined to rule on its status as a newspaper of general circulation.

As a result of those doubts being raised, he is arguing The Post has suffered a decline in advertising revenue for many types of legal notices even though it meets the definition of a newspaper of general circulation under Tennessee law.

The Post is a free newspaper that is published every Thursday and Sunday, and it is distributed to racks throughout Rutherford County. The locally owned publication also offers home delivery subscriptions to readers who live in the Middle Tennessee area.

"Other than the public notice in this case, there has never been a challenge to the adequacy of any other legal notice in The Post," LaRoche said in the appeal, which is scheduled to be heard in March.

Furthermore, he said, the Tennessee Attorney General's Office has never withdrawn its opinion classifying The Post as a newspaper of general circulation.

Murfreesboro Post, 19 February 2013

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Police are hunting two men and a woman who burst into a mosque and shouted racial abuse. The incident happened at the Nasir Mosque on Brougham Terrace, in Hartlepool, at around 7.45pm on Tuesday, February 5.

A Cleveland Police spokeswoman said: "Two men and a woman entered the mosque via the main entrance and began causing a disturbance and shouting during prayer time. They were also racially abusive when asked to leave the premises."

All are described as young, white and of slim build. The first man was wearing a black woolly hat, a blue and grey tracksuit and black trainers. The second was wearing a black and white knitted hat with plaits down the side, a dark tracksuit top and bottoms with a white stripe down the sides and was carrying a plastic bottle. The girl had long, fair hair and was wearing a cream coat with a fur-trimmed hood.

Anyone with information is asked to contact PC Claire McMahon, of Hartlepool Police, on the non-emergency number 101.

Hartlepool Mail, 15 February 2013

See also Northern Echo, 15 February 2013

The same mosque was targeted by the English Defence League in a graffiti attack in 2010.

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CHIPPING NORTON: No one has yet been arrested for a threatening phone call that led to a planned mosque being stopped.

The town's small muslim community had won permission to open the mosque in a former shop in Hitchmans Mews.

But following the decision landlord Georg Wissinter, 79, received a call saying the mosque would get "very hot" if it went ahead. He pulled out of the scheme on Friday.

Oxford Times, 14 February 2013

See also "Chipping Norton mosque threat claim investigated", BBC News, 14 February 2013

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Hamtramck — Two proposals to build mosques are raising tensions here as Muslims seek to raise their political influence in this culturally diverse community.

One group, the Al-Islah Islamic Center, now headquartered in a 3,000-square-foot space on Caniff, wants to relocate to a remodeled two-story, 20,000-square-foot building in the city's central business district at Jos. Campau and Caniff.

Already approved for a zoning permit, the group has run into resistance from the city's zoning board over its proposed remodeling of the building.

A second group, the Abu Bakr Al-Siddique Islamic Center, is expected to face the city's planning commission on Wednesday to seek approval to convert a building in the city's industrial zone on the northeast corner of St. Aubin and Faber into a mosque.

Supporters of the Al-Islah project packed a recent zoning board meeting to urge approval of the relocation plan. Some said they suspected the city's resistance springs from anti-Muslim sentiment. "This is more than glass and parking spaces, this is Islamaphobia," activist and resident Bill Meyer said.

Masud Khan, who serves on Al-Islah's board as secretary, said city officials seem to be driven by the old guard of predominantly Polish constituents. "This town is mostly Polish people; they feel like this is threatening their comfort zone," Khan said.

Opponents of the Al-Islah relocation, however, say they are not anti-Muslim, but rather are concerned about traffic, lack of parking and the rapid proliferation of Islamic worship centers in the core city.

The zoning board on Wednesday voted 4-2 to deny three variance requests from Al-Islah related to the amount of windows in the building's storefront and the location of parking spaces. The two dissenting votes came from two of the panel's three Muslim members. A third Muslim commissioner, Mohamed Hussain, removed himself from considering the matter because he is a member of Al-Islah and did not want the perception that the group unfairly benefited from his influence.

Supporters of the project pleaded with the board to reconsider plans, saying the building's proposed design fits in with the aesthetic tastes of the city's burgeoning Muslim community.

Detoit News, 10 February 2013

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The Collectif contre l'Islamophobie en France reports that there has been yet another fascist graffiti attack on a French mosque, this time at Provins in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. On Saturday morning worshippers found six red swastikas sprayed on the walls and doors of the building. The CCIF points out that this follows a similar attack only a week ago at Ozoir-La-Ferrière.

French interior minister Manuel Valls has issued a statement condemning the incident and declaring his support for the Muslim community, but the CCIF dismisses this as just words, when what is needed is action. They add that Valls himself, with his expulsion of preachers, his talk of the Republic's "essential struggle" against the veil, and his treatment of French Muslims as the enemy within, has helped to legitimise Islamophobic acts.

See also "Swastikas daubed on mosque in latest attack", The Local, 11 February 2013

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The Collectif contre l'Islamophobie en France reports that in addition to those at Ozoir-La-Ferrière and Besançon, a fourth mosque was the target of an Islamophobic act this weekend: at Meximieux in eastern France. On Saturday mosque officials found an envelope containing slices of ham in the mailbox. When they went to the police station to lodge a complaint, officers refused to register it on the grounds that the letter only contained pork and was not accompanied by a letter with insults or threats.

Hamza Dziri, one of the mosque officials, contacted the CCIF. He was distraught, as this is not the first time acts of hatred have been directed against the mosque. While it was under construction he found stickers on the walls, windows and site gates featuring swastikas and tricolor flags and bearing the name of a mysterious organisation of "patriots".

In January 2012 vandals broke a window and damaged the scaffolding. After that the site was placed under guard by members of the mosque and fifteen days later two vandals had returned, throwing stones at the glass door and breaking it. They escaped by car, but the guard was able to identify the registration number, which enabled the police to arrest the perpetrators. The vandals received suspended prison sentences and had to pay compensation.

With such a history, the CCIF observes, it is not surprising that Hamza Dziri says he is "worried".

The protection of places of worship should not be left solely to the faithful, the CCIF says. Following antisemitic attacks in France, schools and synagogues have been placed under police surveillance. The CCIF concludes: "In the current situation where mosques are the target of Islamophobic acts every week, the competent authorities must urgently put in place a security plan for Muslim places of worship."

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Vandals have targeted a French mosque in a graffiti attack, tagging the worship centre with swastikas and anti-Islam slogans, officials said Sunday.

The attack was discovered by worshippers arriving for morning prayer at the mosque in Ozoir-La-Ferrière, a small town 35 kilometres (20 miles) east of Paris.

Photographs of the mosque show at least two swastikas painted on the facade, as well as an explicit anti-Islam slogan and "Long Live Gaul," the ancient Roman-era name for France.

Police were investigating the incident.

In the eastern city of Besançon, two mosques were also vandalised, where the Star of David had been painted on the walls.

Interior Minister Manuel Valls condemned the attacks "with the utmost severity" and called them "foul and hateful."

According to statistics from an Islamic monitoring organisation, 201 anti-Islam attacks were recorded in France last year, up 28 percent on 2011.

AFP, 3 February 2013

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WEST BLOOMFIELD — The Michigan Supreme Court won't hear an appeal over the sale of a Detroit-area school for a mosque and Islamic community center.

In an order released Saturday, the court said a September decision by the appeals court in favor of the Farmington school district will stand.

The Islamic Cultural Association bought the vacant Eagle Elementary School in West Bloomfield Township in 2011. Some residents sued, claiming the deal was somehow corrupt and hidden from the public. An Oakland County judge and the appeals court have said critics have no standing to sue.

The Islamic association has said opponents are unfairly targeting people over their Muslim faith. The West Bloomfield Planning Commission has not taken action on the proposed mosque.

Associated Press, 2 February 2013

See also "State Supreme Court rejects appeal of West Bloomfield mosque opponents", West Bloomfield Patch, 2 Febuary 2013

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A man who made hoax bomb threats against mosques in Southampton has been spared jail.

Timothy Bingham, 43 of Fairbairn Walk, Chandlers Ford, made calls to police giving false information about bombs in and around the city.

He was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment, suspended for two years at Winchester Crown Court. He was also ordered to complete 100 hours unpaid work and given a six month curfew.

BBC News, 24 January 2013

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A Thatcham man was today (Weds) sentenced to three months' imprisonment after admitting to one count of racially aggravated harassment and a section 4 public order offence at Reading Magistrates' Court.

Rory Rowbottom, aged 21 of Poffley Place, pleaded guilty to the offences in connection with an incident in Newbury in October where a pig's head was discovered outside a mosque in Pound Street (pictured).

Deputy local police commander for the Newbury area, Ch Insp Lindsey Finch, said: "I welcome the outcome of the court case today, and hope that it serves as a reminder that racial harassment of any kind is totally unacceptable in today's society and will be dealt with as a priority by both the police and the courts.

"This kind of harassment will not be tolerated by the police, or by the community as a whole.

"It was heartening to see the response from other communities in West Berkshire who were equally distressed and horrified that this could happen to Muslims in Newbury.

"This was a particularly distressing crime, targeting a very respectful and close community in West Berkshire.

"The police response when alerted to this incident was swift and decisive, and a detailed and comprehensive investigation then followed.

"I also take this opportunity to remind people that they can continue to have confidence in reporting racial incidents to the police and that they will be investigated fully and respectfully."

A representative of the Newbury Mosque Committee, Lucky Nizami, said: "The mosque has been in Newbury for a number of years and this incident shocked members of the mosque because Newbury is such a close and tight-knit town.

"We cannot understand why someone would want to do such a thing and it has saddened many, many people. However the mosque committee is very grateful for the support and kindness shown by a large number of people from the Newbury area.

"Muslims in West Berkshire are a very respectful community who do not interfere in matters of faith for other local communities.

"The Muslim community is very tolerant of others' beliefs, but hold several things very close to them – those are the Koran, the Prophet and the Mosque.

"It was therefore beyond the understanding of the community why anyone would wish to insult them by directly attacking one of those – in this case, the Mosque.

"Police responded so effectively and respectfully to this incident, and have conducted a very thorough and wide reaching investigation.

"This positive and supportive response has further increased confidence that the police will continue to respond robustly if incidents are reported to them.

"This is also evident in the way that the community left all aspects of the investigation in the hands of the police and trusted that the outcome would be the right one.

"We are really pleased that the man who was responsible has appeared before the court and we accept the decision of the court."

Newbury Today, 23 January 2013

See also "EDLer Rory Rowbottom jailed for mosque pig's head", EDL News, 23 January 2013

After he appeared in court last month Rowbottom took to Facebook to express his displeasure at press reports of the case:

There would seem to be solid grounds for a further charge against Rowbottom, under Section 127(1) of the Communications Act 2003, which makes it an offence to send over a public electronic communications network a message that is "grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character". The offence carries a possible 6-month prison sentence.

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